


21st Century Meltdown

by zorac



Series: Echo Park - an anthology [8]
Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Implied/Referenced Suicide attempt, No Storm in Arcadia Bay, Tattoos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-01
Updated: 2017-06-15
Packaged: 2018-11-07 19:38:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11065746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zorac/pseuds/zorac
Summary: When Kate decides that she wants a permanent reminder of everything she’s been through, she knows exactly who to go to for help. If she ends up getting rather more than she bargained for, maybe that’s just the universe balancing the karmic books.





	1. Stepping on the Stones

Chloe looked up from behind the counter at the Two Whales to see the elfin blonde girl come in. Kate and Max were in there for dinner most Friday nights, but this week Kate was alone – and much later than usual. She paused for a moment, looking back at the entrance as if considering fleeing, then walked nervously over to the corner booth. She sat down, and immediately turned to stare out of the window, wringing her hands. Chloe finished drying off some glasses, then sauntered over to Kate’s table.

“Hey, if you’re looking for Max Factor, you’re out of luck. Warren finally persuaded her to go out on an actual date. Makes a change from the last few weeks of that ‘just going out to do stuff as friends, definitely not a date, honest’ bull…” Chloe actually surprised herself by censoring the final word. She knew Kate had been through a lot, and part of the whole growing-up thing she was trying to do was to respect other people’s feelings and beliefs, rather then saying whatever the fuck she wanted. To be honest, she found that harder than getting – and keeping – a job.

“I know,” smiled Kate, “I saw him doing a fist pump behind her back after she finally said yes.” Chloe snorted at that. “Actually, I came here to see you. I know you get off shift soon, and I was hoping you could spare a few minutes to talk to me. Of course, I completely understand if you’re tired and just want to head home.”

Chloe was taken aback; she’d hung out with Max and Kate a bunch of times since that crazy week back in October – albeit usually with either her or Kate as a bit of a third wheel – but the two of them had never spent any time together one-on-one. “Uh, no.” She saw Kate’s confused look, and realized that was an entirely unhelpful answer. “I mean, of course.” The last thing Kate needed right now was someone rejecting her. “Just give me ten minutes, then we can talk all you want. Anything I can get you in the meantime?”

“I would love a cup of tea.”

“You are so predicable,” said Chloe with a smirk. “I’ll go grab that for you.”

“Thanks, Chloe.”

Quarter of an hour later, Chloe slid a large mug of black coffee along the table and collapsed onto the bench opposite Kate. “Damn, it feels good to be off my feet. I mean, it’s nice to be responsible and all, and having the money coming in means I’m not such a burden on Joyce, but I’m just not built to be standing around for hours on end.” She took a sip of her coffee. “So, what did you want to talk about, Hawkeye?”

“Hawkeye?” asked Kate, with a raised eyebrow.

“You know me, I like to give people nicknames.”

“Yes, but Max has made me watch that _Avengers_ movie, so I do know that Hawkeye is a guy.”

“Ah, my young padawan, but I’m referring to the comic books, where there are currently _two_ Hawkeyes. One of them is indeed Clint Barton, as seen in the movies. The other, some would say better, and undeniably more attractive Hawkeye is Kate Bishop; hence your superhero nickname.”

Kate smiled. “Clearly you’ve put some thought into this. How can I deny you?”

“Well, it’s not like I’ve had much else to do for the last fifteen minutes,” muttered Chloe. “Anyway, to what do I owe the honor of your presence?”

“Do I need a reason to spend time with my best friend’s best friend who I’d really like to be my friend too?”

“Well, when you put it _that_ way… wait. You want to be friends with me?”

“Of course. Why is that so surprising to you?”

“In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m hella messed up.” She made a face. “Sorry, I’ve been trying to keep my language under control around you.” Kate laughed at this, a little musical laugh. Chloe found herself _really_ wanting to make Kate laugh like that again.

“You really don’t need to worry about that, I’m not going to get offended by a little colorful language. I live next door to Victoria F-Bomb Chase, and you know that Max can have a bit of a potty mouth.” Her face took on a more serious expression. “And when it comes to being messed up, I’m the one who tried to jump off a roof recently.”

Chloe winced at that. “I’m sorry, that was kinda thoughtless of me. I have a bad habit of forgetting everyone else’s problems other than mine and Rach…” She trailed off, grief flashing across her face. “Mine and Max’s. Look, I just want to say that I’m in awe of how you’re coping, even if ninety percent of what I see is just you putting on a brave face.” Another pause. “I know what it’s like, and I…” She broke off awkwardly.

“Chloe,” Kate began slowly, “are you having suicidal thoughts?”

“What? No! I mean, not any more.” She paused, considering. “Listen, I’ve never told _anyone_ about this, and I really don’t want Max or Joyce to know. It’s ancient history now, but they’d both just worry constantly, and I’d never hear the last of it. Can you just keep this between us?”

“Of course, Chloe. You can trust me with your secrets.”

“So, about five years ago, my dad was killed in a car accident. We were always incredibly close – I was a total Daddy’s girl if you can believe that – so it just completely destroyed me. To make things worse, pretty much right after it happened Max’s family fucked off up to Seattle, and suddenly there were these two gaping holes in my life. Joyce tried to be there for me but, shocker, she was even more broken up about Dad being gone than I was.”

“Fast forward around eighteen months. Joyce had started dating David, about a decade before I was ready for her to begin moving on, so pretty much every time we saw each other we got into a screaming row. I hadn’t had so much as a single text from Max in all that time, and thanks to my shitty new attitude I’d alienated every other friend I had. I was feeling like everyone had abandoned me, no one cared about me, and I just didn’t have anything worth living for.”

“One afternoon, I was skipping class again; Step-Douche was on the prowl, so I was desperately trying to find somewhere to hide from him. It turned out that the school nurse had left her office unlocked, so I holed up in there. Being me, I couldn’t help snooping around, and I soon found all the bottles of pills. That’s when I realized that here was a way to end all of my problems; I guess the idea had been in the back of my mind for a while, because it immediately made perfect sense. I grabbed the bottle with the scariest-looking warnings and left through the window, heading for my favorite hiding spot in the bushes behind the swimming pool.”

“Once I got there, I found out that the pill bottle had one of those insane child-safety lids. I was trying to wrestle it off, when someone called out to me. I vaguely recognized her from class; a new girl who’d just moved to Arcadia Bay a couple of weeks earlier. I honestly don’t remember exactly what she said to me, just that she’d followed me because she thought I seemed cool and that she was hoping we could be friends. That it looked like I had a lot of shit going in on my life, that she understood because she did too, and that maybe we could help each other through it.”

“That was Rachel Amber, wasn’t it?” asked Kate, when Chloe paused to wipe away a tear.

“Yeah, she was my angel. She saved me, not just by reminding me that I had things worth living for, but by _giving_ me something worth living for; by showing me that somebody cared about me – somebody I barely even knew. She came over, sat down beside me, and gently took the pills away. After a moment, I just broke down, and she held me while I cried. I must have fallen asleep, because suddenly it was dark and I was curled up with my head on Rachel’s lap.”

“She helped me up and made sure I got home okay, then headed back to Blackwell, telling me that she was looking forward to seeing me the next day. Just like that, we were best friends, and I had something to get up for in the morning. Yeah, she didn’t make all my problems magically go away, but with her in my life they at least seemed more bearable. Most of all, she never once made me talk about what happened that day, and I think that, more than anything, helped me put it behind me.”

Kate reached out and put her hand on Chloe’s. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that, but thank-you so much for trusting me with it. I can’t imagine how hard it must be to talk about something that you’ve been keeping to yourself for so long.” She paused for a moment and looked down. “I’m sure this makes me a horrible person, but a little part of me is glad that I’m not the only one who’s been through this; that I know somebody else who understands what it’s like.”

Chloe leaned across the table and lifted her fingers under Kate’s chin, forcing the other girl to look her in the eye. “Oh, Kate, I don’t think you could be a horrible person if you spent a month trying.” Then she grinned. “Sorry, Hawkeye, but you just ain’t got it in you.” Kate laughed at that. “Still, I think I can find room in my life for a not-horrible friend.”

“I would like that very much, Chloe.” Her face was a picture of pure happiness.

That meant a lot more to Chloe than she was willing to express, so she tried to make light of it. “Awesome! Hey, and speaking of horrible people, is there anyone I can lay a smackdown on for you? That Victoria bitch, for example? That’s what friends do, right?”

“Um… I’m not sure that _is_ what friends do; and actually, since got back to school, Victoria has been… I dunno, subdued, maybe? She even sent me a sweet card when I was in the hospital. Don’t get me wrong, she’s still a… a bitch, she just seems a bit less cruel about it. Certainly she’s been leaving _me_ alone.”

“She’s probably just feeling guilty.” Chloe pointed out.

“Quite possibly,” Kate agreed, “but I would like to at least give her the benefit of the doubt.”

“Damn, I don’t think I could ever do that, not after what she put you through. It’s like you’re a saint or something.” _Also naïve,_ thought Chloe, _but damn if I don’t want to protect her from anyone else who might spoil that._

“I’ve been called that before, but I’m not sure how many of those people actually meant it as a compliment.” Chloe’s expression darkened, so Kate hurried on. “Anyway, I might not need an enforcer, but there is something you can do for me, it’s what prompted me to come and see you: I need some advice.”

“You do know that I got kicked out of Blackhell, right? I’m not sure I’m the person you want to come to for advice. There are plenty of brighter kids at that school than me.”

“Don’t sell yourself short, Chloe. I can tell that you’re a lot smarter than you let on. Besides, it’s not academic advice I’m after, but something that’s more up your street. I’m not sure if any of the other girls at Blackwell have tattoos.”

“Seriously? You’ve never checked any of them out in the locker room?” Kate’s expression in response to that was almost comical. “Of course you haven’t; stupid question. Anyways, Victoria may be a bitch, but she’s got a mighty fine tat above her mighty fine ass, and Dana…” she trailed off, seeing that Kate was going red. “Wait, what? Why are we talking about tattoos?”

“Because…” Kate started nervously, “because I want to get one.”

Chloe’s response to that was a slack jaw, bug eyes, and several slow blinks. Eventually, she shook her head to throw off the daze. “Clearly, I’m hallucinating,” she said to no-one in particular, “because I could swear that Kate Marsh just said she wanted a tattoo.”

Kate actually _giggled_ at that. “You’re not hearing things. I really love your sleeve, and I was hoping you’d be able to recommend somewhere.”

“Of course, we can go to the place I got this done,” she said, looking down at her bare arm. “Luna is an amazing artist.”

“Thanks, Chloe. Wait, we?”

“Of course! That has to be what friends do, right? Besides, you _really_ don’t want to go to the one tattoo parlor in Arcadia Bay.” She shuddered. “I’ve seen the results; besides, that way _everyone_ will hear about it – and I have a feeling this is something you’re going to mostly want to keep to yourself. Nope, we’re going on a road trip to Portland, and I’m not taking no for an answer!”

“I… uh…”

Chloe leaned forward and spoke earnestly. “You can trust me, Kate. I would never let anything bad happen to you.”

She could see the truth of it shining from Chloe’s eyes, and that made the decision for her. “Okay, sounds like fun!”

“Great! I have to work tomorrow evening, so… is next weekend okay with you?”

“So soon?”

“The longer you put it off, the more chance you’ll chicken out. Strike while the iron is hot, and all that crap.” Seeing Kate’s expression, she hurriedly continued, “No actual hot irons involved, I promise. It’s just a figure of speech.”

There was pause, and Chloe got a slightly panicked look, before Kate burst into laughter. “Gotcha! Honestly, Chloe, I did do _some_ research.”

“Fine!” Chloe tried to sound angry, but failed miserably. She was seeing all sorts of new sides to Kate, and she liked it. Like, _like_ liked it.

“Anyway, next weekend sounds great,” said Kate, “and thank-you,” she finished softly.

“Hey, no problem. And, uh, thanks for listening.”

After that, the two girls just sat there for a while, smiling at each other. Eventually, Chloe realized that her hands were still around Kate’s, and pulled away, looking slightly embarrassed. “So, uh, it’s getting late and they’re gonna wanna close up the diner soon. I can give you a lift back to Blackwell if you’d like.”

“I’d really appreciate that.” Kate settled her check while Chloe went to pick up her things up from the back room, then they headed out to the parking lot and climbed into Chloe’s truck. They’d done this drive a bunch of times before, but always with Max squeezed in the middle, chattering away to both of them. Eventually Kate broke the silence.

“So, do you mind if I ask you a personal question?”

“Sure, as long as you respect my right to tell you to fuck off if I don’t want to answer. Aw, shit, I’m sorry.” Chloe smacked herself on the forehead. “I’m clearly not cut out for moderating my language. Bollocks to it.”

Kate laughed. “Bollocks? Who says bollocks?”

“I don’t know… British people? Also me, and apparently you now; must be all that tea you drink. Shame on you, Miss Marsh!”

“As I said earlier, I’m not quite the prude that people seem to think I am, or at least want to believe I am.”

“Yeah, I’m getting that. Clearly I’m a good bad influence on you.” She got a wicked grin on her face. “Heh. I said that to Max a few weeks ago. Seems like I’m on a mission to corrupt Blackwell, one cute girl at a time.”

Kate raised an eyebrow at that. “Which brings me back to my question. Earlier, when you told me about how Rachel saved you. The way you spoke about her… you loved her very much, didn’t you? As more than just a friend?”

Chloe gripped the steering wheel tightly. After a moment, she spoke. “Part of me wants to tell you to… but that would be like denying what I felt. Yes, I was head over heels in love with Rachel. In my mind I was planning our future together. Moving to a state where we could legally get married, settling down and living happily ever after.” She sighed. “Unfortunately for me, she was straight as an arrow.”

“I never actually told her how I felt, but I’m sure she knew. She was always really flirty and affectionate with me, so when she stopped going out with boys all the time I… I let myself hope that maybe she was bi after all, and that perhaps I stood a chance with her.” She huffed. “Turns out that actually she was secretly seeing this guy, and she just didn’t want to tell me about it.”

“You sound angry about it.”

“Maybe I am. She lied to me. She led me on. She let me think that she wanted to be with me.”

“Maybe she did, but she just couldn’t, at least not the way you wanted. I’m sorry, sweetie, but Rachel couldn’t wish herself gay any more than one of those horrible conversion camps could actually make you straight.”

Chloe gave her a sideways look. “How is it that you always seem to know the right thing to say to make me feel better?” Kate just blushed. “And I should apologize, I was half expecting a lecture about my immoral ways. I know you’re not like that, it’s just that the Christians we mostly hear about are people like those Westboro’ Baptist…”

Kate cut her off angrily. “I can’t stand people like that. I don’t understand how they dare to call themselves Christian. They cherry-pick a handful of Bible verses and twist them into something hateful. Jesus preached about love, and tolerance, and forgiveness. Those people are doing the exact opposite!”

“Whoa! Look at you all fired up!” There was something in the tone of Chloe’s voice that could only be described as pride.

Kate glanced at her and smiled. “My faith is incredibly important to me, so when I see people perverting it I do get a little bit angry. I believe that when we truly, unselfishly love someone, then we’re doing God’s work. It shouldn’t matter who they are. Their gender, the color of their skin, their religion… none of it.”

Chloe pulled into the school parking lot and brought the truck to a stop. She turned to look at the other girl. “You are one hundred percent pure awesome, and don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise. I’m just sorry it’s taken me so long to find out.”

“No more awesome than you, and don’t you forget it! I’m so glad we got to spend this time together.” She surprised her new friend with a quick hug, then climbed out of the truck. “Goodnight, Chloe.”

“See you around, Hawkeye!” she respond with a salute, before driving off into the night.


	2. We Build Our Homes

Kate hadn’t appreciated just how late it had gotten. While there wasn’t an official curfew, once it got beyond a certain time, the security guards were wont to start asking awkward questions and reporting late returnees to the principal. This was the first time she’d been out late enough that she was having to sneak back into the dorm. In the end, she decided that it wasn’t really much different from walking back from class; even hiding behind a tree to avoid David Madsen was probably something she would have done during the daytime.

She arrived at the currently-nameless dormitory building just in time to catch Warren coming down from the girls’ floor. Emboldened by her evening with Chloe, she decided to have a little fun with him. “Mister Graham,” she began, putting on a shocked expression, “I do believe that gentlemen are not permitted in the ladies’ dormitory. Particularly not at this time of night.”

“I, uh, I was just making sure that Max got back to her room safely. Nothing else, I swear!”

“Hmmm, very well, but I shall be keeping an eye on you. I had better not see any funny business.”

“Um. Right. Of course, Miss Marsh.” Warren scurried off, and Kate had to stop herself from laughing out loud. She headed up to her room, but hesitated when she saw that Max’s door was slightly ajar. She decided to see if her friend wanted to have a late night chat in lieu of their usual Friday evening. Max appeared a few seconds after she knocked.

“Hi, Kate!” she said, brightly. “I thought you were asleep; it was dark under your door when I got in.”

“Oh, I… I only just got back in myself. I’m afraid I gave your boyfriend a bit of a hard time on his way down.”

“He’s not my boyfriend!” She blushed a little. “Well, not yet, anyway.” Drawing back, she let Kate into the room. Collapsing on her bed, she waved at her friend to sit on the couch.

“I take it that your evening with Warren wasn’t a complete disaster, then.”

“Not at all. It’s like, after I finally agreed to go on an actual date with him, he managed to dial things back and stop with the whole ‘trying too hard’ routine. We both got to a place where we were able to just relax around each other, and it turned out to be a lot of fun.”

“So, more dates in your future then?”

“For sures!” she nodded vigorously. “I want me some more of those goodnight kisses!” She hesitated. “Did I, um, say that out loud?”

Kate laughed, “I’m afraid you did. And don’t think you can persuade me to forget it.”

“Well, I don’t know about that. I’m sure there are people who would be fascinated to hear that Kate Marsh came in so late. Plus there’s that aura of happiness about you… I think I’m not the only one who had a hot date tonight!”

Kate flushed “What? No!”

“Your red face says otherwise. C’mon, spill! Who’s the lucky guy?”

“There is no guy. I just went down to the Two Whales. You know how I value my routines.”

“Mmm hmm. That routine involves me being there too. So if not me, then who were you going to meet?”

Kate sighed. “Chloe. I went to meet Chloe.”

“Oh. I didn’t think you two really knew each other that well.”

“Exactly. You’re _my_ best friend, and she’s _your_ best friend. It was starting to get slightly ridiculous that our main interactions were smiling and nodding while the other one talked to you. I thought it would be good for the two of us to spend some time together without you around and get to know each other better. We ended up talking until they closed up the diner, and found out that we have a lot more in common than either of us expected.”

“That’s great! So the happy glow…”

“…is just that I had a really good evening, and I made a new friend.”

“Well, I’m glad. I don’t want you – or Chloe – to feel left out when we all hang out together.” Max didn’t seem entirely convinced, but evidently decided that pushing for more would not be a good idea.

Kate yawned. “I’m sorry. I must be more tired than I thought. I should get to bed. I’m glad you and Warren had a great first date.”

“Thanks, Kate. I’m really happy that you and Chloe became friends.” Getting up, she walked her friend to the door, where they shared a brief hug. “’Night.”

“Goodnight, Max.”

* * *

Max was dragged out of sleep by the sound of someone pounding on her door. She stumbled, zombie-like, across the room and opened it, squinting into the bright lights of the corridor. Given the blurry shape outside was blue at the top, she guessed, “Chloe? What ungodly hour is this?”

“It’s hella after ten, Mad Max!”

“Ten? On a Saturday morning? I refuse to believe that such an hour exists.”

“You’d better believe it! And by way of apology, I bring coffee.”

Max thought for a moment, then nodded. “Aye, that’ll about do it. Come on in.” She immediately climbed back into her bed, accepted the steaming cup from Chloe, and sat there sipping at it. After a couple of minutes, her brain slowly started to function and she looked up at her friend. The other girl wasn’t exactly _pacing_ , but she clearly had something on her mind. “Please sit down, you’re making me dizzy. And tell me what’s going on; it must be pretty drastic to have you out of bed before noon.”

Chloe stopped abruptly, then sprawled on the couch. “I’m going straight to hell,” she announced.

Max waited expectantly for a few seconds, then prompted her, “and why is that, exactly? I mean, I can think of a few possibilities, but I’m guessing this is something new.”

“Yeah. I kinda… sorta… maybe… have a bit of a crush.” She paused for dramatic effect. “On Kate.”

Even though Max had already suspected the name, she found she still didn’t need to fake her surprise. “Kate? Kate Marsh? My blonde-haired, tea drinking, very Christian friend Kate?” Chloe nodded dumbly. “Well, in that case, I doubt you’ll be going _straight_ to hell,” she finished with a smirk.

“Oh, ha, ha. I’m having a crisis here and you’re playing word games?”

“I learned from the best!”

Chloe pursed her lips for a moment. “Touché. But seriously, I am so not her type. I mean, the church isn’t exactly known for its acceptance of the whole gay thing, or drugs, or… blue hair, probably.” She sighed. “I am hella screwed.”

“Maybe, but only metaphorically!”

Chloe looked at her sourly. “Great, I’d barely even thought as far ahead as first base. No sex before marriage plus no same-sex marriage equals one unhappy Chloe.”

“Listen, Kate isn’t defined by her religion. Yes, it’s important to her, and yes, she takes it seriously, but I don’t think she’s one to blindly follow the doctrine. A lot of what the bible says is open to interpretation, and the high-profile preachers and bible-thumping politicians who like to do that interpreting all have their own agendas.”

Chloe mused on this. “You know, you’re right. Kate said a lot of the same things herself last night. She didn’t bat an eyelid at me being gay, hell, she came right out and asked me about it!” She paused, reflecting. “In fact she actually seemed pretty open-minded about a lot of things.”

“I would guess that staring death in the eye has a way of doing that to a person.”

“Yeah, I suppose it does.” She straightened up on the couch and leaned forward. “Listen, I have a confession to make. Some of the things I told Kate last night, they’re things I’ve never told _anyone_ before, things that I’m not ready to tell you yet. There’s just something about her that made me feel completely safe telling her anything. Please don’t be mad, Max!”

Max got off her bed and went over to sit next to the other girl, taking her hand. “Oh, Chloe, I could never be mad at you about something like that. Just because you’re my best friend, doesn’t mean I’m entitled to find out everything about you. I may not know exactly what you went through those five years I was away, but it seems obvious that plenty of it was not-good, and I’m sure that me not being here really didn’t help. So I absolutely understand that you still have some abandonment issues when it comes to me. I trust that you’ll tell me about those things when you’re ready, and in the meantime I’m really glad that you’ve found someone you _can_ talk to.”

Chloe smiled at her. “You’re the best, Super-Max!”

“I’ll be sure to tell Kate you said that.”

“Hey…”

“…and speaking of, my advice is just to take it really slow, and see where it goes. I know it’s a bit of a stretch from ‘not homophobic’ to ‘not straight,’ but if you don’t give it a shot, you’ll never know. And what’s the worst that can happen? You gain an awesome new friend.” Her phone made an alarm tone. “Fuck! I really need to get ready for class. Now that they’ve found a replacement for Jeffershit, we’re doing an extra-long photography session today to catch us up.” She got up and started grabbing her shower things. “Are you going to be okay?”

“I’m fine. In fact, I’m grrreat! Thanks for the pep talk, Max Factor.” She hesitated. “Uh, could you check the hall for me. I don’t think I’m ready to run into Kate just yet.”

Max opened the door and peered out. “You’re all clear. Make like a tree; I’ll see you later.”

“Adios, Max!”

* * *

It was Monday afternoon before Chloe saw Kate again. She was hanging out with Trevor and Justin – mostly to mock their pitiful skateboarding skills – when she spotted her friend coming out of the main building. Kate smiled when she hurried over. “Hi, Chloe, I was wondering when you’d show up.”

“I wanted to catch up with you about our plans for next weekend. It’s a kinda good news / bad news / good news thing.”

“Um, okay.” Kate looked confused, so Chloe plowed on.

“I talked to Luna, and the good news is she can fit us in on Saturday. The bad news is it’ll be late in the day, so we won’t really want to drive back afterwards.”

“And the other good news?”

“It’s the prefect excuse for an overnight trip! We can take our time, see a bit more of the city. Being a nerdy type like Max, I bet you’re desperate to go to that massive bookstore too!”

“That does sound like fun,” Kate admitted, “but I’m not sure my parents would approve of me being away overnight. And yes, I’d love to go to Powell’s, although I would feel a bit mean going without Max.”

Chloe grinned. “C’mon Hawkeye, live a little. What your parents don’t know won’t hurt them.” With the slightest hint of reluctance she added, “and we could always invite Max to come too.”

Kate shook her head. “She’s already got plans with Warren for Saturday night. Besides, I like the idea of it being just us two, getting to know each other better.” She considered it for a few seconds, then nodded frirmly. “Let’s do this!”

“Awesome! I guess that means I’ll see you guys at the Two Whales on Friday night, so we can organize exact times then. I’ve got the whole weekend off, so we can head out on Saturday morning and don’t need to worry about rushing back on Sunday. What do you want to do about a place to stay?”

“I’ll get that sorted out. If you’re going to be doing all the driving, then the least I can do is pay for a motel room, as long as you don’t mind sharing.”

“Nope, sounds good! Luna’s tattoo place is up in St. Johns, so something on that side of the city would be perfect.”

“Okay, I’ll see what I can find. Thank-you for helping me do this, Chloe. If it was just me, I’d have dithered around and never got anywhere. And now… I’m actually really excited about our weekend away, even if I’m a little bit nervous about the main event.”

“Just a little bit, eh?”

“Alright, I’m…” she put on her best ‘serious’ expression, “ _hella_ nervous about it.” Kate managed to keep her face straight a couple of seconds longer that Chloe, who cackled gleefully. “Anyway, I should head back to my room. I’ve got a ton of homework, and I need to really stay on top of that so I can keep our weekend clear. I’ll see you on Friday.”

“Have a great week, and don’t work too hard, Hawkeye!” She bumped fists with a rather bemused Kate, then watched her hurry off in the direction of the dorms. Chloe was walking back to her truck when she heard a call from behind her and turned around to see Max regarding her with a quizzical expression.

“You come all this way and don’t even find me to say hello? I’m wounded, Chloe Price, wounded to the core!”

“Hey there, Bat-Max, I wasn’t sure if you were around. I mostly came out here because I needed to talk to Kate.”

“You ask her out yet?”

“I’m whisking her off to the big bad city for a weekend of debauchery!”

“Seriously?”

“Of course not. I’m sure Kate has no interest in getting debauched, and I don’t debauch and drive, so…”

Max gave her a long-suffering look. “Sometimes I really have no idea whether or not to take you seriously.”

Chloe just smirked. “I’ll see you guys on Friday night. The Two Whales are calling; time for me to go to work.”

“Okay, fine, but you’d better explain all this at some point.”

“Patience is a virtue, Maximus!” This earned her a weak punch to the shoulder. “Hey! I was going to wish you a good week, but now I think I’ll just wish you a… mediocre one.”

“Right back at ya!”

* * *

Friday night seemed to come round in no time at all. Kate and Max took the school bus into town to grab burgers and fries at the Two Whales. It had been a busy week at Blackwell, and this was the first time in days they’d had the chance to chat for more than a few minutes at a time.

“So,” began Max, “what are your plans for the weekend? I talked to Chloe a few days ago, and she said you two were doing something together, but she was rather vague and confusing.”

“We’re heading over to Portland for a couple of days. I think it’ll actually do me good to get away from this town for a little while. There is a specific thing I want to do, but…”

“I knew it! You’re going to Powell’s without me, aren’t you?”

“Well, yes, probably, but that’s not what I’m talking about.” She hesitated for a moment before asking “is it wrong that there’s something I want to keep just between me and Chloe for now?”

“Of course not,” Max replied earnestly. “When I talked to Chloe she said she’d talked to you about some stuff that she’d never told me, and that’s fine. I abandoned her just after William died, and I’m sure that’s a big part of why she got into such a bad place. She has every reason to have issues with me, and in some ways I’m a little surprised she’s let me in as close as she has.”

“I’m really happy that she’s found someone she feels comfortable talking about that stuff with, and I would never want you to betray anything she’s told you in confidence. That means that you need to be able to keep some things just between the two of you. It’s also part of you developing a friendship of your own rather than just being to people who know each other because they’re both ‘friends of Max.’”

“Is that anything like ‘friends of Dorothy?’ I’ve heard that mentioned a few times and I wasn’t sure what it meant.”

“Um,” began Max, thinking back to her conversation with Chloe. “Maybe?”

“Hey, you guys!” Chloe burst in. “Talking about me? Sorry I didn’t see you sooner, I drew the short straw and got stuck on washing up duty.” She slid onto the bench next to Kate.

“Yes,” began Kate, seriously, “Max was telling me all about your secret plans for world domination. I have to say, I’m fascinated.”

Chloe rounded on Max. “What part of ‘secret’ do you not understand? You do realize that Hawkeye here is an Avenger, and stopping world domination is kinda what they do!”

“I literally have no idea what you two are talking about, other than the fact that Chloe seems to have given Kate a pet name that’s, like, extra-nerdy.” She paused. “Although, Kate Bishop is hella awesome.” They all laughed.

“Seriously, though, I’m really glad you two guys have been spending time together. I can’t quite put my finger on why, but it seems to be good for both of you. I hope you have a fantastic time this weekend on whatever secret mission it is that you’re up to.”

“Thanks, Super-Max. If it wasn’t for you, I don’t think me and Kate would have ever really met. I can’t see myself being, like, ‘hey, I totally need to be friends with that shy, serious, religious girl.’”

“And it would never occurred to me that the girl with blue hair and a bad attitude would actually make a really great friend,” continued Kate. “So, thank-you.”

“You’re welcome, guys, just call me Max the Matchmaker.”

“Whoa, hold your horses there, Maximillion. We’re not married yet or anything!”

“It’s not even legal in Oregon.” Kate pointed out; then, after a moment, “what?”

“I’m just kinda surprised that you went with the secular reason there,” said Max with a raised eyebrow.

Kate sighed. “Let’s just say that I’ve become a lot more aware of how misguided the intolerance of some people in the church can be since I was a target of it.” Off their confused looks, she continued, “suicide is one of the really big sins, as my mother was so kind as to point out to me. Repeatedly.”

Chloe pulled her into a sideways hug. “Hey, no more of that. I want you to get your happy head on for tomorrow!”

“Yes, ma’am, Captain Chloe!” Max and Chloe both laughed at this. “Now what?”

“When we were kids, we used to dress up as pirates all the time,” Max explained, “Captain Chloe and First Mate Max.” She smiled, reminiscing, “good times.”

“The best,” replied Chloe with a huge grin. “Look, I hate to be the party-pooper, but it’s about time for me to get you two back to Blackwell. We don’t want poor Kate to have to sneak in after curfew again.”

A few minutes later, they pulled into the school parking lot. “So,” said Chloe to Kate, “I’m not usually an early riser, _especially_ at the weekend, so can I meet you back here at, say, eleven tomorrow? That sound okay, Hawkeye?”

“That sounds great. It’ll give me time to finish up my last couple of bits of classwork before we leave.”

“And Max Factor, have fun on your date with Warren, whatever it is. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” she said with a big wink.

“That shouldn’t be too difficult, it’s a pretty short list…” Max snarked in response.

“How dare you!” Chloe responded with mock anger. “Out of my truck, both of you. Begone!” Laughing, the two students climbed out and headed back to their dorm.


	3. Laughing in the Face of Fear

It was around five past eleven the next morning when Chloe arrived back at the Blackwell parking lot. Kate immediately got up from where she’d been waiting and bounced across to the truck; Chloe greeted her with a smirk. “Looks like someone had their morning coffee!”

“Nope!” replied Kate gleefully; then she admitted, “I did have some rather strong tea, though.”

“Of course you did. Ready to go, Hawkeye?” Off Kate’s nod, she put the truck into gear. “Portland, here we come!” She put on some music, and was surprised to find that Kate started to sing along. “What’s with the singing?” she asked when the track ended.

“I guess I’m just really excited. Or maybe nervous. Or… maybe both. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, you have a beautiful voice. I guess I’m a bit surprised that you know any of my music.”

“It probably comes from hanging out with Max so much.”

“Yeah, she does keep stealing my CDs…”

“Anyway, it’s your turn now.”

“What? No! I’m more a dancer than a singer – and I can’t dance and drive!”

“Aw, come on! I have to get you to sing at least once before we get to Portland…” She did, eventually, but it was still Kate who provided most of the vocals. Seeing as they were in no particular rush, after a couple of hours they decided to stop for a leisurely lunch in a road-side diner.

“So,” began Chloe once they’d settled in and placed their orders, “I’ve been meaning to ask. What is it that made you want to get a tattoo, and do you have any idea of what you want – or where you want it?”

Kate took a sip of her drink. “Actually, the first two of those are connected, and tie into our conversation last Friday night. It’s something I read about on the Internet, and it really resonated with me. I want to get a tattoo of a semicolon.”

“What, that weird bit of punctuation like a comma with a period on top. Why?”

“Because it’s a symbol. A lot of people have been getting them, people like us who attempted suicide but survived. Like, as a reminder of how bad things got, but that we’re still here. ‘An author uses a semicolon when they could have ended a sentence, but chose not to. You are the author, and the sentence is your life.’”

“Very poetic, I didn’t know you had such a way with words.”

“Sorry to disappoint you, but I got that off a website.”

“So this is about the meaning of the semicolon. It’s not really about getting a tattoo.”

“I suppose so. You’re not disappointed, are you?”

“What? Of course not. To be honest, I was a bit worried that I was just enabling you and this was something you would regret later. Knowing there’s a reason behind it makes me feel a lot better.”

“I’m glad. I actually like the idea of having this indelible reminder that even though my life seemed completely unbearable, I found the strength to carry on. Yes, it was Max who talked me down off that roof, and I’ll never stop being grateful to her for that, but ultimately I had to choose to let her help me. Plus that was just the beginning; it’s been a long journey and a lot of hard work to start putting myself back together.”

“Yeah, I remember that process. Just remember that you’re not alone. You’ve had Max to help you, and now you’ve got me as well. Seriously, any time you need to talk about things, day or night, just give me a call.”

“Thanks, I really appreciate that. Although, I don’t think I actually have your number…”

“Good point.” She pulled out her phone. “We should swap numbers now, otherwise if we get separated in Portland you’ll be stuck without a ride home!” Once they’d done that, she considered for a moment. “It’s been a while since I got my sleeve, and I was planning on getting some more ink done while we’re at Luna’s place; that way you get to see the tattooing process in action before you get yours. I’d decided on my inner forearm, but I wasn’t sure what I wanted there. I was going to have a look through Luna’s book of designs when we arrived, but now I’m wondering if I should get a semicolon of my own.”

Kate smiled, “you totally should! It would be kinda cool if we had matching tattoos, plus it really has meaning for you too. I drew a bunch of possible designs, if you’d like to take a look.” She stopped for a moment, thinking. “One problem with that: I was going to explain to Max what my tattoo is about; she’s bound to ask, and she’s not going to believe I got it on a whim. If you get a semicolon too and she notices, she’s going to ask about it. So, if you’re not ready to talk to her…”

“She might well not ask. I told her that there are things that I’m not ready to talk about to her yet, and she respected that. If she does ask, it’ll be because she’s worried about me. If that happens then… then I owe her the truth. Besides, I doubt it’s healthy for me to hide this from everyone forever. The reason I haven’t told her already is that part of me is still mad at her for abandoning me five years ago, even though I know that it’s not like her parents gave her any choice.”

“Matching tattoos it is, then,” Kate grinned.

A moment later, the waitress returned with their food. “Here you go. Enjoy!”

“Thanks,” said Kate before turning back to Chloe. “Actually, that helps me out with your third question. I really wasn’t sure _where_ I wanted to get the tattoo – it needs to be somewhere I can easily cover it up, but I don’t want it to be somewhere I can easily forget about it. The inside of my forearm sounds like a good match. Maybe my left arm, so it’s not exactly the same place as yours.”

Chloe nodded, “that’s a good spot, especially for what you want. And hey, if you’re feeling adventurous it’ll make a good start for a sleeve going up your arm!”

Kate gave her a skeptical look. “Uh huh.”

“Hey, we live in Arcadia Bay. Stranger things have literally happened.” She grinned. “So, how’s your food?”

“It’s okay, but I guess I’m going to be judging all other diners by the standards of the Two Whales. I’d not really eaten out much before I came to Blackwell – my mother doesn’t approve of any food other than her own home cooking.”

“So the Two Whales is the only other diner you’ve eaten at?”

“Yes… well, no. Speaking of strange things happening in Arcadia Bay, Max did take me to this one other place just after I got out of the hospital, but I’ve never been able to find it again since, like it just up and vanished. I remember that there was an English waitress, because she managed to produce this huge selection of teas from somewhere, but I couldn’t tell you anything else about it.”

Chloe stared at her for a moment, then laughed it off. “That _is_ strange. Maybe it didn’t last long because they couldn’t compete with Joyce’s cooking.”

Kate smiled at her. “That _would_ make a lot of sense.”

* * *

It was mid-afternoon by the time they got into Portland. The girls decided to head straight to the motel Kate had booked to get checked in and drop off their stuff. Chloe grabbed the bags while her friend hurried over to reception to pick up the keys.

“Okay, we’re all set. Our room is over there on the second floor.” She led Chloe up the outdoor stairs and along the balcony. Unlocking a door, she revealed a clean, if sparsely furnished room – containing a single queen-sized bed.

Chloe raised an eyebrow at that. “Well,” she drawled, “this isn’t what I was expecting. How forward of you, Miss Marsh!”

Kate blushed. “It was all I could find. I wanted to get a twin room, but apparently there’s some convention in town and pretty much everywhere was already booked out; my budget wasn’t going to stretch to two rooms.”

“Hey, I’m only teasing! Of all the people I could be having a sleepover with, I think you’re the one I can trust not to try anything,” she finished with a wink.

“Well, I don’t know, girlfriend.” Kate put on a drawl of her own. “You’re so hot I may not be able to help myself.” She managed about two seconds of looking at Chloe’s expression in response to that before bursting into laughter.

“Damn, Hawkeye, you are not as innocent as you first appear. You almost had me going there!”

“I’ve been working hard on not taking myself too seriously. Confronting your own mortality puts things in perspective. It’s not like I’m going to go to hell if I have a little bit of fun every now and then.”

Chloe collapsed on the bed and stretched out. “I call dibs on this side.”

“Which side? You’re lying in the middle.”

“Fine, I’ll decide later. For now, I’m too comfy to move.”

Kate smiled and pulled a sheaf of papers from her bag. “These are some possible designs I’ve come up with,” she said, passing them to Chloe. “Let me know if there are any you like, or if there’s one you think would particularly suit me. I’m going to have a quick shower; I feel a bit icky after all that time in the car.”

Chloe leafed through the designs, impressed with the quality and variety of Kate’s work. She picked out one with almost childlike spirals of ink as the one she thought would best suit her friend. When she got to the final page, she stopped cold; the intricate design featured a grinning skull as the dot, with a swirl of red ribbon as the comma. Clearly Kate had drawn it specifically to match her sleeve.

Kate emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later, dressed in a fresh blouse and toweling her hair. She smiled when saw the two drawings Chloe had laid out on the bed. “I see you picked my favorite one,” she said, indicating the spiral design, “and I was hoping you might like the one I drew for you.”

“It’s perfect! How did you know?”

Kate shrugged. “I didn’t. I just had the idea while I was sketching possibilities for me, and I though I’d draw it for you in case you ever wanted to get a semicolon too.”

“Well, thanks for doing that. I love it! Since we both have designs picked, there’s no rush to get over to Luna’s place, so I’m going to grab a shower too, and then we can head out.”

* * *

The tattoo studio was on a shopping street out in the suburbs, and was a far cry from the seedy establishment Kate was somehow expecting. That, and Chloe’s hand in the small of her back, gave her the courage to walk through the door. They were greeted by a young woman with platinum blonde hair and dreamy eyes. “Hello again, Chloe,” she said in a melodious voice.

“Hi Luna, this is my friend Kate.”

“I’m pleased to meet you,” said Kate, “your work on Chloe’s sleeve is incredible.”

“I’m happy that you think so,” Luna replied with a smile. “Do you have designs, ideas, or did you just want to look through my portfolio?”

“I drew these,” said Kate shyly, producing the two drawings.

Luna studied them for a few moments, then looked up. “First things first: I know what these represent. Are you both doing okay now?”

Kate was touched by the immediate concern. “Yes, thank-you. I’ve had so much support from my friends, and now I know the truth behind what drove me there, it makes my angry rather than depressed.”

“And my story is old news,” said Chloe. “I put that part of my life behind me a long time ago, but after Kate told me about this, I thought it would be good to have a reminder.”

“I’m glad to hear it. Kate, your artwork is fantastic; you’ve done a wonderful job of complementing my original design on the one I presume is for Chloe – I can just match the colors to the ones I used for her sleeve.”

Kate ducked her head, secretly pleased with the praise. “You’re very kind.”

“I love the bold strokes of the other design. Have you thought about what color you’d like me to use?”

“Um… not really. I don’t want it to stand out too much.”

“Maybe a deep red, then?”

Kate thought for a moment. “That sounds good.”

“What about size and placement?”

“We’re both going for inner forearms,” said Kate. “I don’t want mine too big, maybe an inch or so long.”

“I’d like mine a bit bigger, to show off Kate’s art; I’ll go with your judgement on what size would look best.”

“Okay then, let’s get started. Who’s first?” asked Luna.

“That would be me,” replied Chloe. “Kate’s a newbie; this way she gets to see what she’s letting herself in for.”

“Okay,” she turned to Kate, “just bear in mind that Chloe’s tattoo will be larger and more complicated than yours, so it’s going to take much, much longer than yours will.” She was glad of the warning, because it took a little over two hours for Luna to complete the design. Still that time meant her fears were allayed – by boredom, if nothing else.

That all changed when she sat in the chair herself; the nerves came flooding back as Luna sterilized the skin of her forearm and applied the stencil. “Okay, take a look and let me know if that looks right. This is the last chance to change your mind!” Kate studied it for a moment, then nodded, not trusting herself to speak right then. Her other hand found Chloe’s and held on tightly. “Alright,” said Luna, “let’s get started.”

* * *

“I still can’t believe I did that!” Kate was lying back on the bed with a slightly dazed expression on her face.

“This totally calls for a celebration. Put on your dancin’ shoes, Hawkeye, we’re hitting the town!”

“Um. You do remember what happened last time I partied, right?”

“Yes,” Chloe looked at her seriously, “and that’s why we should do this. If you let what that piece of shit did stop you from going out and having fun, then that’s like letting him win. We’re not at the Vortex club; nobody in Portland is going to know who you are, or want to pick on you. I’m going to be right by your side the whole time to make sure you’re okay, and neither of us are going to touch a drop of alcohol.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yup. If Max found out that I was driving you around while even the tiniest bit drunk, she would literally kill me. Besides, we’d need fake ID to get served in the first place.”

“Not about that! I mean, is this really a good idea? What if there are guys… hitting on me, and I freak out? Plus, I’ve never really been dancing much; what if people laugh at me? And don’t people just go to these places to drink, anyway?”

“Okay, first up, facing your fears is good, if you do it safely. If at any time you feel uncomfortable, if you want to leave for any reason – or no reason – then we come straight back here, no questions asked. Secondly, this isn’t _Strictly Ballroom_ ; trust me, nobody is going to care how you dance. Thirdly, I have a cunning plan! The place we’re going has an alcohol-free bar, and the guys there aren’t going to be the least bit interested in us…”

Kate gave her a baffled expression, so Chloe cued up a song on her phone and started playing air guitar to the intro before singing along: “ _Girl! I wanna take you to a Gay Bar! I wanna take you to a Gay Bar! I wanna take you to a Gay Bar, Gay Bar, Gay Bar!_ ” She stoped, seeing Kate with her face in her hands, shaking.

Hurriedly, she silenced the music – to discover not the sobs she feared, but barely contained laughter. “Okay, let’s do it! This whole weekend is about me pushing my boundaries, and it does seem like that would be a good way for me to let off some steam. So, I should be safe from the guys, but, um, am I going to get hit on by other women?”

“It’s a distinct possibility,” answered Chloe, “you are super-cute. That’s why you have your fake girlfriend,” she gestured at herself, “as an easy excuse for a polite brush off.” Then she grabbed Kate’s left hand with her right one and continued in an exaggerated voice, “look! We got matching tattoos today! Aren’t we just an adorable couple?”

Kate pulled her into a brief hug. “Thank-you. For pushing me, but not too hard, and for,” she looked down and smiled, “literally holding my hand through it. You’ve obviously put a lot of thought into making sure I feel safe, and I really appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome. Just be glad I didn’t suggest going to a strip club.” Kate shot her an unamused look. “Hey, I was kidding when I said that to Max! Well, mostly. Anyways, let’s get ready to party!”

“Just one more thing: I didn’t pack for this. What am I going to wear?”

“Funny you should mention that…”

* * *

A few hours later, they were in the queue for the club. Kate was wearing a short-sleeved check shirt, and a tight black skirt that went to mid-thigh. It wasn’t all that different to clothes she would normally wear; the loans from her new friend were chosen well. Chloe was dressed as usual: in jeans, and a tee advertising some band Kate had never heard of. When they reached the front of the line, Chloe paid the cover and they headed inside.

At first, Kate was overwhelmed by the noise and the crowd. Seeming to sense this, Chloe took her hand and led her over to the end of the bar, where she bought them a couple of fruity drinks. They leaned against a wall, sipping them slowly while Kate adjusted. Once they were finished, Chloe turned to her. “So, are you ready to hit the dance floor?” she asked in a loud voice.

“I suppose…” Kate replied nervously, eyes downcast. Then, forcing some confidence she didn’t really feel, she looked up at Chloe and nodded. “Yes. Let’s go!” Chloe grinned, and dragged her away from the wall. She found an open spot on the floor, and locked into the beat. Uncertainly, Kate began to move too. She glanced around, and quickly saw that no two people seemed to be dancing exactly the same way, and that plenty of them looked as uncoordinated as she felt.

Realizing that no-one – other than Chloe – was watching her, Kate began to relax. Her movements became more fluid, and the world outside seemed to fade away as she lost herself in the music. It felt incredibly freeing to forget all her worries, push aside her insecurities, to let it all go and just dance. For a few moments, she moved closer to Chloe so that she could be heard over the din. “Thank-you so much for making me do this!”

“You’re welcome, Hawkeye!” she replied with a huge smile. Chloe was right that the guys in the club were far more interested in each other than in any of the girls. After a while, she realized that the way another woman was dancing closer to them was deliberate and, with surprise, that the interest was directed at her. She shot a nervous look at Chloe, got an encouraging nod in return, and then found herself dancing with a stranger.

Over the next couple of hours, Kate lost count of how many different women she danced with, and she couldn’t remember ever having so much fun. As promised, Chloe was always nearby, keeping an eye on her, and the couple of times one of Kate’s dance partners got a little too close for comfort, she swooped in to reclaim her ‘girlfriend.’ Dancing close to Chloe didn’t feel uncomfortable at all; in fact, Kate started to really like it.

Eventually, she began to fade, like the Energizer bunny when its batteries finally ran down. Chloe took her arm and led her outside, where the cool night air perked them both up a little as they walked towards where she’d parked her truck. “So, did you have a good time?”

Kate’s body might be tired, but she was still riding on an emotional high. She threw her arms around Chloe as she replied. “That was seriously the best night _ever!_ ”

After a moment’s surprise, Chloe hugged her back. “Mission accomplished, Hawkeye!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The website that Kate mentions which inspired her to get the tattoo is [Project Semicolon](https://projectsemicolon.com/about-project-semicolon/).


	4. Dreams Will Keep Us Sane

Chloe woke up the next morning to find that they’d both shifted during the night. She’d ended up almost in the middle of the bed; too used to having a big one to herself at home, she supposed. She wasn’t the only one to make for the centre, though – meaning that Kate had ended up draped across her, the blonde girl’s head resting on her chest. She smiled, and waited for her friend to wake up.

Kate roused about half an hour later. It took her a few moments to realize what her face was pressed up against, then she sprang back, mortified. “Chloe… I… I’m so sorry!”

The other girl just smirked back at her. “Hey, it’s not your fault I make for a comfy pillow.”

“Still, you should have woken me.”

“Why? You clearly needed your sleep, and I had no problem with the arrangement. Cuddles are good for the soul, yanno!” More seriously, she continued, “really, Kate, it was perfectly innocent, you’ve got nothing to be worried about.”

“Well… okay. I suppose you’re right.”

“But, speaking as your fake girlfriend, if you do want some more cuddles, I’m totally up for that!”

“You never stop, do you?”

“Nope!”

Kate hesitated for a moment, then turned and leaned back into her friend. Chloe was caught off-guard by this, but not wanting to have her bluff called, wrapped an arm around the other girl and spooned her closely. They both sighed happily and just lay there for a few minutes. Eventually, Kate asked “what’s the plan for today?”

“Well, given that we had a late night yesterday, and I’ve got the breakfast shift at the Two Whales tomorrow, I really need to get to bed at little-old-lady-o’clock tonight. So, I was thinking we should grab showers, go find somewhere to eat, and check out that bookstore Max is always raving about. That leaves us maybe a couple of hours to kill before we have to head for home.”

“Sounds good. Powell’s is actually on our way out of town, so we should probably go there last. Other than that… I’d quite like to have a look around the Portland Saturday Market.”

“Um, you do realize it’s Sunday, right?” pointed out Chloe

Kate batted at her playfully. “Of course I do. Despite the name, the market’s open all weekend.”

“Okay, sounds like we have a plan then.”

“Great. As for food, I’m pretty sure there’s an IHOP not far from here, and that’s my treat.”

“Epic free breakfast? Awesome!”

“I’ve seen how much you eat. I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?”

“Hey, I can show restraint…”

“Give me three examples.”

“Uh… just gimme a sec to think…”

* * *

It turned out that Chloe wasn’t the only one who could put away an impressive amount of food. Kate found herself to be surprisingly hungry; she supposed it was due to all the energy she’d burned off on the dance floor the previous night. Since it was more like brunch time than breakfast, the girls decided to make the most of it so that they wouldn’t need to stop and eat on the drive back to Arcadia Bay.

Sufficiently fortified, they headed down to the river to explore the market. Kate was mostly interested in checking out all the arts and crafts stalls, and Chloe was content to simply tag along – she was finding that it made her feel pretty fucking good to see her friend so happy and excited because of something she’d helped to organize. Eventually, Kate stopped at a stall where the pictures were created entirely out of numbers and equations. She spent several minutes chatting away with the artist before purchasing a small print featuring a butterfly.

Chloe checked the time on her phone. “We should probably head off soon if you still want to stop off at that bookstore on your way home,” she said reluctantly.

Kate smiled. “Okay, it’s not like there was any chance of me seeing everything. Besides, that means there will be new things to see if I ever get the chance to come here again.” They headed back to Chloe’s truck, and not long later were parking up at Powell’s City of Books.

Chloe looked at the store. “Wait, this place takes up an entire block?”

“Yup.”

“Now I see why you book geeks are all so desperate to come here…”

* * *

Chloe: Holy fuck, I didn't know there were this many books in the entire world.

Chloe: Seriously, it's like we've wandered into the Library of Congress or some shit.

Max: You went to Powell's without me. I hate you :((

Chloe: NO EMOJI.

Chloe: You could have come too if you didn't have that hot date with Warren.

Max: He would have just made wounded puppy-dog eyes at me until I said he could come too.

Chloe: No room in the truck.

Chloe: Wait, doesn't loverboy have a car?

Chloe: Make him bring you here for your next date!

Max: Not a bad plan. Still jealously mad at you, tho.

Chloe: Totes worth it to see the expression on Kate's face.

Max: You got it bad, girl!

Chloe: I know not of what you speak.

Chloe: She's already planning on coming back here some day as an author.

Max: I've seen some of her work, she's got real talent.

Chloe: Yeah, she showed me a few of her drawings.

Chloe: Anyways, is there anything you want me to pick you up?

Chloe: They have, like, all the books.

Max: Nah, I'm good.

Chloe: Then why you want to come here?

Max: BECUASE BOOKS!

Chloe: OK...

Chloe: Looks like Kate is done. We're heading home now. See you later.

Max: See ya!

* * *

The sun was already low in the sky as they left the outskirts of Portland behind them. Chloe was taking frequent drinks from the bottle of Mountain Dew they’d picked up to make sure she stayed alert. Kate, on the other hand, was still high on the excitement of the past twenty-four hours. “Thank-you so much for this weekend, Chloe.”

“You’re welcome, Hawkeye!”

“All I came to you for was a little advice, and instead you took me on an adventure. You showed me that, while I may never forget the events of last month, I don’t have to let them define me. You helped me to get back the confidence I lost, and some that I never even had in the first place. You made me feel more cared for than I think I ever have before.”

“I… I don’t know what to say, Kate. Thank-you for giving me this chance to step up and be your friend. Hearing those things you just said about me? That’s a pretty damn good feeling right there.”

“You deserve it,” said Kate firmly.

Chloe hesitated for a moment. “Look, feel free to tell me to get lost, but I feel like I should ask. When you said that I made you feel more cared for than…” She trailed off. “What about your family, Kate?”

She sighed, and there was a long pause before she answered. “Lynn and Ruth, yes, absolutely. I’ve never questioned that they love me, but I’m their big sister, so it’s always been more about me looking after them. My Father… I know he cares, he’s just not always very good at showing it. As for my Mother, I’m clearly not the daughter she wanted; whatever I do, I’m just not good enough for her, and I’ve never really been sure why. Maybe she just hoped for a little carbon copy of herself, and that’s simply not me.”

“I’m sorry, Kate. I can’t imagine what that must have been like growing up. I mean, I may not have had the best relationship with Joyce the last few years, but I’ve never doubted that she loves me.”

Kate shrugged. “It is what it is. They say the family of the Twenty-First Century is made up friends, not relatives. Maybe I can build a new family, starting with you and Max.”

“I like the sound of that. Also, did you just quote _Spaced?_ That’s some serious nerdiness!”

“Um. Maybe? I did watch a few episodes of it with Max when she was working her way through Warren’s giant flash drive.”

“We’ll make a geek of you yet. Can’t have you being the only muggle in the family!”

* * *

Kate was still smiling as she entered her dorm corridor. Noticing that Max’s door was open, she quickly dropped off her bag and went over to see her friend. She knocked on the door as she walked in, then headed straight for the couch. Max was at her desk, but immediately turned around to greet her. “Hey, Kate, how was the road trip?”

“Awesome,” she replied with a big grin, “best weekend ever!”

“Wow. Clearly Chloe went all out.”

“How was the hot date with Warren?”

“Why do you guys insist on calling it that? It was just dinner and a movie.” She paused, “and some serious making out in his car afterward, but nothing R-rated, I swear!”

“Chloe said I should tease you about next time being the third date, but I’m not really sure what she’s on about.”

“Oh, it’s some dumb fake rule about how you should sleep with a guy on the third date. Any sooner than that and you’re a slut, any later and you’re frigid. It’s complete sexist bullshit.”

“Good to know; I’ve had a little too much experience with both labels. I wouldn’t want anyone judging me because I shared a bed with Chloe on what would have been our first date.”

“Wait… what?”

“Oh, I couldn’t book us a twin room, so it’s not like we had any choice. I did wake up in a bit of a compromising position this morning though. Maybe,” she mused, “it’s because she took me to that gay club last night…”

“Okay, back up. This needs a little more explanation.”

Kate smiled, “after… our secret project, Chloe insisted we should go out dancing. She thought it would help me to make some new, good memories to counteract what happened at that Vortex Club party. I took a little convincing, but it turns out she was right. She suggested the gay club because that way I wouldn’t need to worry about getting hit on by random guys, and because the place only had an alcohol-free bar.”

“I’m so glad she did, because I had a fantastic time. After what happened to me before, I was ready to write off that kind of thing for ever, and that would have been really sad. Then, this morning… we must have both shifted in the night, because we woke up… a little tangled together. It was a bit embarrassing, but honestly, I actually kinda liked the human contact.”

“Huh. Sounds like your date was better than my date. Clearly Warren needs to up his game.”

“Except mine wasn’t actually a date.”

“You keep telling yourself that.” It was then that she noticed the patch of raw-looking skin peeking out from under the end of Kate’s sleeve. “Hey, what happened to your arm?”

She glanced down at where her tattoo was and pulled the sleeve down. “Oh, that? It’s… nothing.”

“It doesn’t look like nothing, Kate. Are you hurt?”

“Really, trust me, I’m fine. Look, it’s been nice chatting with you, but I’m not entirely sure what time we got to bed this morning, so I really need to catch up on sleep.”

Max hesitated, but decided to let it drop. “Of course. Goodnight Kate, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“’Night, Max.”

* * *

Max was blessed with a free period at the start of her Monday timetable, so she caught the Blackwell bus down to the Two Whales. It was the tail end of the morning rush, but still busy. Joyce waved her over to a seat at the end of the counter and poured her some coffee. “What can I get you this morning, Max?”

“Eggs and bakey, please, Joyce. And can I borrow Chloe for five minutes once things have calmed down.”

“Didn’t you just see her yesterday?”

“No, not since Friday night.”

“Oh, I thought you two girls went over to Portland for the weekend.”

“That was Kate, not me.”

“That friend of yours you’re in here with most Fridays? I didn’t know she and Chloe were close.”

“They weren’t. They’ve been spending more time together since I started dating Warren.”

“I hope you two are being safe.”

Max blushed. “Joyce!”

The older woman smiled, “just because you’re five years older doesn’t mean I’m going to stop mothering you, young Max. I’ll be back with your breakfast soon, and I’ll send Chloe out when she has a free moment.”

“Thanks, mom,” she replied with a rueful grin.

Max was just finishing up her food when Chloe planted her elbows on the counter in front of her. “What up, Maxaroni?”

“What happened to Kate?”

“What do you mean?”

“I saw what looked like some kind of wound on her arm. Is she hurt? She wouldn’t talk to me about it. You were supposed to be looking after her!”

“Which is exactly what I did. What _did_ she tell you?”

“That it’s nothing, that I shouldn’t worry about it, and to trust her,” Max replied reluctantly.

“So you proceeded to ignore all three things she said and come get a rage on at me. Way to treat your friends, Max,” she finished bitterly.

Max visibly deflated. “I’m sorry, Chloe, I just worry about Kate. She’s really okay?”

“Like she said, there is absolutely nothing for you to worry about. I may not be a shrink, but I’m pretty sure her head’s in a better place than it was two days ago. You’re just going to need to trust us. Kate will explain when she’s good and ready; until then you just need to drop this, or _you’ll_ be the one hurting her. Please, just trust me.”

Max sighed. “How did I end up like this? So distrustful of the people I care about?”

Chloe shrugged. “For a few days there, you really were Super-Max. You had the power to fix things that nobody else could, so you felt like it was your responsibility to. You need to let that go, or you’re going to drive yourself mad, and drive everyone else away.”

“When did you get so wise, Chloe?”

“Hey! I’ve always been this way. You just weren’t paying attention before. Uh… isn’t that your school bus?”

Max turned and looked. “Shit, yes. I gotta run. Thanks for being awesome, and I’m really sorry about earlier.”

“Apology accepted, Captain Needa. Now scram!”

* * *

That Friday saw Max and Kate in their usual booth at the Two Whales. They were finishing up their desserts when Max finally gave in. “So, are you going to tell me why you’ve been on edge all evening?”

“What? Oh, yeah. We just need to wait for Chloe. I kinda promised her she would get to see your reaction.”

“Speak of the devil, and she shall appear!” Chloe said, dramatically. “Uh, just let me clear your plates, and I’m all done.” A few moments later she slid in next to Kate. “So, Hawkeye and Iron Max, what goes on at your secret Avengers meeting?”

“Can we tell her that,” Max asked Kate, “I mean, if she’s not an Avenger too?”

“Uh… probably not. Are there even any Avengers with blue hair?”

“I’m honestly not sure. I mean, there’s several decades’ worth of Marvel comics, and pretty much all of their superheroes seem to end up in some version of the Avengers, so it’s entirely possible.”

“Your boyfriend would know,” Chloe chimed in helpfully.

“Probably, but we’ll just co-opt you as Blue Widow for now.”

“Wait, did she just not deny that Warren is her boyfriend?”

“I think you’re right,” said Kate. “Congratulations!”

“Fine, I’ll let you have that one, provided that neither of you mentions the third date thing again.”

“You strike a hard bargain, Maximoff.”

“Anyway,” said Kate, “the reason I’ve been nervous, is because it’s finally time for me to show you something. But first, I just want to let you know that this was completely my idea, and I just came to Chloe for some help with the execution.”

“Duly noted. I shall consider myself preemptively chastened.” Kate rolled up her left sleeve to reveal her forearm. Max just stared for a few seconds, then said, “Oh my God, you got a tattoo?” She considered for a moment. “Well, that explains a lot. It’s… a semicolon?”

“Yes, it’s become a symbol for people like me who tried to…” she still couldn’t quite bring herself to say it.

Max made the connection. “Because you use it in place of a period if you want to continue a sentence rather than end it.”

“Exactly. I wanted a reminder, not so much of what I tried to do, but that with a little help from my friends I found the strength not to.”

Chloe took a deep breath. “I… uh… I got some fresh ink done, too,” she said, showing it to Max.

“Oh, Chloe,” she said, tearing up, “why did you never…” She stopped herself and answered her own question. “Because when you needed me most, I wasn’t here for you.”

Chloe nodded. “I know that it wasn’t your fault, that you didn’t want to leave, but I was so angry with you, and all the feelings from that time are so jumbled up together…”

“Hey, you have nothing to apologize for.” She stoped for a moment, then simply asked “Rachel?”

“Yeah.”

“You all but told me that first day we were back together. I’m glad you had someone to look out for you after I left, And I’m so sorry that I won’t have the chance to thank her for saving you.”

“You saved me too,” Chloe pointed out, “I think she’d call that thanks enough.”

“When was this,” asked Kate, worried, “what happened?”

Chloe sighed. “It was the Monday of _that_ week back in October. I was being an idiot, trying to extort some money out of Nathan Prescott in the girls’ bathroom at Blackwell, when he pulled a gun on me. Thankfully, Max was in there at the back taking pictures of a butterfly. She saw what was going on and set off the fire alarm. That distracted Nathan enough for me to get away.”

Kate looked at Chloe, then at Max. “Why do I get the feeling there’s something you’re not telling me?”

“Oh, Kate,” said Max, “there’s a _lot_ we’re not telling you. Unfortunately, it’s a long, complicated, and painful…”

“…not to mention completely unbelievable…” interrupted Chloe.

“…story. You deserve to hear it, but now is not the time.”

“That’s fair enough. I guess we’ve all had things we’ve not been ready to share. I trust you.” She looked at Chloe as well. “Both of you.” After a moment, she brightened. “So, are you seeing Warren this weekend?”

Max leaned forward and put a precautionary hand over Chloe’s mouth. “Yes, we have our third date tomorrow night.”

“Mpff mpff mpffpff mpff mpff?”

“Did you hear something? I thought I heard something?” Max paused while Kate giggled. After a stern look at Chloe, she withdrew her hand. “Anyway, all he would say is that he has ‘a completely brilliant plan.’ I’m not sure whether to be excited or terrified.”

“Be afraid, be very afraid,” offered Chloe, helpfully.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome!”

“So, uh, do you have any plans for tomorrow night?” Kate asked Chloe.

“Nah, I’ve got afternoon shifts all weekend. I’ll probably just chill at home and catch up on some anime.” Her eyes narrowed. “Why?”

“I was just wondering if maybe you might like to go dancing.” She paused. “With me,” she clarified unnecessarily, then rushed on. “I mean, I really enjoyed last Saturday night, and I thought you did too, and I was kinda hoping that we could do it again.” She looked at Chloe desperately. “Please say something!”

“Um, did Kate Marsh just ask me out?” Chloe asked Max.

“Yup, and it was possibly the most adorable thing ever.”

“What do I do?” Max just gave her a look. “Right. Stupid question.” She turned back to Kate. “Yes. I would love to. There is literally nothing in the world I’d rather do tomorrow night.”

Kate let out the breath she hadn’t even realized she’d been holding in. “Great! That’s… great!” Then a sly grin crossed her face. “Nothing you’d rather do? Not even… third date stuff?”

Chloe’s response was to sputter incoherently, while Max burst into laughter. “Oh, snap!” she cackled gleefully.

“See,” said Kate to Chloe, “you really are a good bad influence on me!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Series Notes: This story always had its genesis in the idea of Kate wanting that semicolon tattoo, but the song title fits well with this story. In addition to the chapter titles, the lyrics contain “jumping off the edge”, and “We've swallowed the pills”, that gave me Chloe's method of attempting suicide so that both are referenced.


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